Noteworthy

With his stunning performance of The Code, Switzerland‘s Nemo won the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö, Sweden. The non-binary artist convinced both the jury and the public to vote for them.

With his participation, the former rapper Nemo Mettler, who lives in Berlin and started focusing on English lyrics, followed in the footsteps of Luca Hänni (4th place), Gjon's Tears (3rd place), Marius Bear (17th place) and Remo Forrer (20th place) and was fighting for the fifth Swiss ESC final qualification in a row.

The 68th Eurovision Song Contest took place in Malmö from 7 to 11 May 2024, after Loreen won in 2023 in Liverpool with the song Tattoo.

On February 26, the Swiss newspaper «Blick» reported, citing multiple sources, that Nemo (24) will compete for Switzerland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 in Malmö, Sweden. The Swiss public broadcaster SRF did not comment on the report, as the official announcement, including the song's premiere, will be made later that week.

As we now know, the reports were confirmed by the announcement that Nemo will participate in the contest with the song The Code. Watch the video clip here:

According to the initial report, SRF's show director, Yves Schifferle, announced on Instagram that Switzerland would not be represented by a man with a ballad, as was the case for the previous three years.

Last year, Nemo announced that they identify as non-binary—followed by the single release This Body.

On Instagram, Nemo wrote: «I haven’t opened up about it publicly, but some of you already know: I don’t identify as a man or a woman. I’m just Nemo. I love thinking of gender as a galaxy, picturing myself as a little star floating somewhere within. That’s where I feel most like myself.»

From Dialect Rapper To Sensitive Singer-Songwriter

The song own sh¡t, released in May 2022, already signified a path towards quirky pop music, away from Nemo's origin in dialect rap sound.

The artist, born in 1999, showed early talent in music—playing the violin, the piano, and drums. With a celebrated participation at the SRF Bounce Cypher in 2016, only 16 years old, Nemo jumped into public consciousness.

2017, Nemo's single Du reached platin status.

Switzerland's independent music scene has chosen the «Album of the Year» for the ninth time: This year's music prize, awarded by IndieSuisse, the association of independent Swiss music labels and producers, goes to the album The Universe Is Black by Malummí, which was chosen by a 28-member jury. The award will be presented at the m4music Festival in Zurich.

In November, all IndieSuisse members had the opportunity to nominate two releases from their catalogue of albums released in 2023 for the IndieSuisse Album of the Year and the Futuristic Perspective Award. For the latter, the members had to argue why the album they nominated offers a futuristic perspective.

Out of a total of 19 nominated albums, The Universe Is Black by Malummí was voted into first place by an independent jury of Swiss and European industry specialists. When selecting the jury, attention was paid to a diverse composition.

Following their debut album Blood (2021), Basel-based project Malummí released their second album The Universe Is Black in November 2023. It marks a departure from the quiet and soft electronic-coloured pop of the debut and ventures into a broader alternative rock sound. The familiar elements of intimate folk-pop with the distinctive, expressive vocals remain.

The Universe Is Black, by Malummí

10 track album

MalummíBandcamp New & Notable Oct 31, 2021

On the new album, Malummí applied new forms of composition and arrangement, breaking away from stylistic conventions. The new album is characterised by a captivating blend of minimalist, experimental indie rock and warm folk-pop, and explores different forms of relationships: to oneself, to other people, to society.

Influenced by personal experiences, it deals with themes such as self-love, mental health, rebirth and the joy of living. The Universe Is Black also takes a critical look at social constructs in a patriarchal, white society.

The m4music Festival is one of the most significant events in Switzerland's music industry. During two days, the festival provides a range of panels, discussions, and workshops and a wide variety of up-and-coming artists from around the globe.

New Artists In The Line-up

Today, the m4music announced additional acts which complement the already communicated line-up. Here are the latest announcements:

Friday, March 22nd

• Aime Simone
• Éna Vera
• Leila
• Mount Jacinto
• Natascha Polké
• Polarbæren

Saturday, March 23rd

• Edb
• Nathalie Fröhlich
• Wa22ermann
• Sam Quealy

On November 29, 2023, m4music announced the first round of acts in their line-up. Here are all the acts you can expect alongside our personal recommendations within the line-up:

Friday, March 22nd

• Noemi Beza
• Mary Middlefield [Negative White recommended]
• Berq
• Deadletter [Negative White recommended]
• Siren of Lesbos
• Bipolar Feminin
• Dave Okumu & The Seven Generations
• Benjamin Amaru
• Yunè Pinku
• Fulmine
• Teezo Touchdown
• Sofia Kourtesis live
• UTO

Saturday, March 23rd

• Moonpools [Negative White recommended]
• Obliecht
• Hannah Jadagu [Negative White recommended]
• Ray Laurél
• BARON.E [Negative White recommended]
• EKKSTACY
• Julia Alexa
• Say She She
• Steintor Herrenchor
• Bibiza
• Barry Can't Swim live
• Nnavy

The Chinese social media company TikTok published an aggressive-sounding statement: «It is sad and disappointing that Universal Music Group has put their own greed above the interests of their artists and songwriters.»

It is the answer to Universal Music Group's (UMG) announcement that they will pull their entire music catalogue from the platform—including artists like Taylor Swift, Elton John, or Billie Eilish. It is the result of an ending contract with no follow-up agreement between UMG and TikTok

UMG also published an open letter to the artist and songwriter community, revealing their position:

With respect to the issue of artist and songwriter compensation, TikTok proposed paying our artists and songwriters at a rate that is a fraction of the rate that similarly situated major social platforms pay. 

Today, as an indication of how little TikTok compensates artists and songwriters, despite its massive and growing user base, rapidly rising advertising revenue and increasing reliance on music-based content, TikTok accounts for only about 1% of our total revenue.

Another concern on UMG's part is the rise of AI-generated music on the platform.

UMG also states that TikTok «attempted to bully us into accepting a deal worth less than the previous deal.» According to the major label, TikTok tried to intimitate them by «selectively removing the music of certain of our developing artists, while keeping on the platform our audience-driving global stars.»

Further, UMG continues: «TikTok’s tactics are obvious: use its platform power to hurt vulnerable artists and try to intimidate us into conceding to a bad deal that undervalues music and shortchanges artists and songwriters as well as their fans.»

In response, TikTok argues against what they deem to be «Universal's false narrative and rhetoric» and claim that they have «been able to reach artist-first agreements with every other label and publisher. Clearly, Universal's self-serving actions are not in the best interests of artists, songwriters and fans.»

Last week, Negative White reported on an incident where unknown scam artists uploaded an AI-generated album in the name of Swiss rock trio Bell Baronets. Since then, the story has been picked up by Swiss magazine Beobachter.

But also, more fake album uploads have been reported. Another Swiss band, Basement Saints, came forward. Like with Bell Baronets, the album has been removed from their profile but lives on in a namesake artist profile, hurting their search results on Spotify.

Today, an album has been uploaded to the profile of Mama Jefferson, another Swiss rock band. However, the band is currently on a hiatus since the previous singer, Vanja Vukelic, emigrated from Switzerland.

Bell Baronets’ Silvan Gerhard, who is also a member of Mama Jefferson, confirmed to Negative White last week that the band remains currently on a break.

AI Increases A Known Problem

As the New York Times wrote several days ago: «For $20, artists can buy an annual subscription to a music distributor, a company that can instantly post songs to dozens of streaming platforms.» And further: «Some marketers have been caught trying to juice the profile of legitimate artists, usually with “bot farms” programmed to play songs on repeat. More often, though, scammers simply create white noise tracks or A.I.-generated tunes on their computers.»

The scheme of abusing the lacklustre verification process between aggregators and streaming platforms we described last week is also a long-known problem. Already in 2019, Pitchfork reported on the issue—including the typical empty corporate statements by both aggregator companies like DistroKid and streaming platforms (DSPs) like Spotify.

However, today’s generative AI tools enhance the problem’s severity: Songs and albums are created within minutes. Last year, Spotify reportedly removed «tens of thousands» of songs from the platform.

Trust Will Fade

Since we are dealing with a loophole that has been publicly known for years, one might wonder why aggregators and DSPs couldn’t put guardrails in place. Technically, it wouldn’t be a significant challenge.

But they don’t seem to care enough, and why would they? Whether it’s a legitimate upload or not, they take a cut of the money anyway. And if the fake uploads primarily affect bands operating under the radar, their reputation won’t take a blow, and legal ramifications are highly unlikely.

AI-generated music will undoubtedly become the music business’ biggest challenge in 2024. Dealing with emerging problems like these fake uploads should be a top priority. Otherwise, musicians must ask themselves why they should invest time and money to build their brands only to be abused by scammers who profit from their efforts.

«It is with great sadness that we announce our dear friend, Luis Vasquez, has passed away,» the statement uploaded on January 19 to The Soft Moon's Instagram page reads. As of publications, the details about Vasquez's death are not known.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Soft Moon | Luis Vasquez (@the_soft_moon)

3 Bodies Were Found

According to a report by CBS News, Vasquez was found in a Los Angeles residence alongside two other dead people. The individuals were identified by the LA County coroner as 46-year-old John «Juan» Mendez, techno DJ and recording artist known as Silent Servant and 43-year-old Simone Ling, who was reportedly Mendez's partner.

Heartbroken Reactions

The message of Vasquez's passing at 44 was met with heartfelt and disbelieving statements by both fans and fellow musicians.

«I'm so extremely sad about this !!! […] This is not fair, it's meaningless… really no words…,» Trentemøller commented. The KVB wrote: «Please no, we can't believe this.» And the LA-based industrial band Health said: «Goddamn it. I'm glad we were lucky enough to make some music with you. This is heartbreaking.»

Luis Vasquez, the child of a Cuban immigrant mother and an absent Mexican father, grew up in Los Angeles, California.

He was the lead vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and sole official member of The Soft Moon, the post-punk and dark wave project he founded in 2009.

With each release, the band gained traction and fans, supporting acts like Interpol and Depeche Mode on their tours. The 2015 album Deeper was especially well-received. T. Cole Rachel wrote for Pitchfork: «Few contemporary artists have managed such a clever reimagining of post-punk and spooky new wave in a way that sounds both familiar and somehow fresh.»

In a review of The Soft Moon's concert at the One Of A Million Festival in 2018, Janosch Troehler wrote for Negative White:

The longer this madness continues, the smaller the chances of rescue. The air glows. Beads of sweat shimmer in the strobe lightning. Bodies synchronise under the mercilessly pounding sound. Words do not do justice to this crazy spectacle; they are a mere shadow of this physical experience. They fade with every blow from Luis Vasquez on the empty oil drum.

Luis Vasquez passed away shortly before The Soft Moon was scheduled to embark on their «Feb 2024 Tour», which would have had them play in several European cities as well as at the Grauzone Festival in The Hague, Netherlands.

The festival's account commented on the post:

Rest In Peace Luis, our dear friend. We are crying writing this, as we knew him almost 15 years. He is one of the reasons why we started Grauzone Festival as he was one of the first to put postpunk back on the map.
His lyrics, his music, his art perfectly fitted us, and that's why we became friends, hung out, and organised many of his shows. Such a kind, funny, talented person.

Only 3 months ago we visited him in LA, and everything seemed well, and he was very very looking forward to his show at Grauzone which would be in a few weeks... we are in total shock. Farewell our dear friend.

«Take me far away. To escape myself. Cos I was born to suffer. It kills my mind. It kills me inside. Take me far away to escape myself»

According to a post on Threads by Maxwell Tani, media reporter at Semafor, the publishing house Condé Nast plans to move the music website Pitchfork under GQ.

Tani posted a screenshot, apparently showing the note to Pitchfork's staff by Anna Wintour, Condé Nast's Chief Content Officer:

Today we are evolving our Pitchfork team structure by bringing the team into the GQ organization. This decision was made after a careful evaluation of Pitchfork's performance and what we believe is the best path forward for the brand so that our coverage of music can continue to thrive within the company.

The note further indicates that the current editor, Puja Patel, will also leave the company. She replaced the site's founder, Ryan Schreiber, in 2018. According to the New York Times, Condé Nast declined to comment on how many employees will lose their jobs.

Blog Turned Corporate

The origins of Pitchfork date back to 1996 when Ryan Schreiber created the website. The early music blog grew significantly and became a landmark in online music journalism—even organising their own music festivals starting in 2005.

In October 2015, Condé Nast, the publisher of magazines like Vogue, Wired, and The New Yorker. It is unknown how much Condé Nast paid for the acquisition. However, Fred Santarpia, the publisher's chief digital officer then, said: «Pitchfork is profitable, and it boasts a thriving live events business, with events in Chicago and Paris, and robust video offerings — both vital and growing parts of the publishing business.»

Pitchfork's acquisition was the last stepping stone of a blog that reached the heights of the corporate publishing world. Around the same time, other digital media offsprings like Vice or Buzzfeed saw their glory days.

Continuous Decline

In recent months and years, all these former blog echelons saw a critical decline. Vice filed for bankruptcy last year, Buzzfeed shut down its news division, and now Pitchfork becomes the latest poster child to see what is probably its downfall.

Although Pitchfork's advertising page still boasts that the site reaches a «loyal audience of more than 7 million monthly unique visitors», the accuracy of this number is likely low as the information has not changed since 2016.

Wintour's note unveils apparent problems through the corporate phrase «a careful evaluation of Pitchfork's performance,» which translates to a failing business model.

Unclear Future

What the folding of Pitchfork's staff into GQ means for the brand is yet to be clarified. Will it disappear or remain a standalone website? So far, no information has been provided that answers this question.

However, the news is again a clear indication that music journalism in its current form can not survive in the corporate world with an advertising-based business model. While titles like Rolling Stone Magazine can still feed off the nostalgia factor, online magazines seem to struggle much more.

Since 1991, people have enjoyed cultural events in «Kultur in der Futterfabrik», or KIFF for short. However, the venue in Aarau, Switzerland, has seen its best years and doesn't meet the rising standards of a modern event space anymore. Or as the association puts it: «The spaces are too small, insulation and ventilation are poor, and the infamous stairs too steep... Renovation is simply not an option, and the lease is expiring.»

An Ambitious New Space

The proposed solution is to tear down the old factory building and create a new space. According to the website, the new venue should become a «versatile home for pop culture» with a large hall for concerts, a club, a restaurant, an exhibition stage, rehearsal rooms, and a new home for the local indie radio station Kanal K.

On November 27, 2022, the people of Aarau voted with 75.7% to support the new project financially. With around 27.6 million Swiss Francs already raised to support the project, KiFF started a crowdfunding campaign to raise additional funds. The goal is 500'000 Swiss Francs.

Under the motto «KiFF me baby one more time», crowdfunding is now entering its final stage with only nine days left. As of publishing, around 376'000 Swiss Francs have been collected.

Not A First in Switzerland

The ambitious plans and crowdfunding are not new for Switzerland's cultural venues. In 2020, the traditional concert and club venue Albani was raising money to buy the building where they were located. They raised over 500'000 Swiss Francs and saved the long-term existence of a cultural institution that had existed since 1988.

Also in 2023, Neubad in Lucerne, located in an old swimming pool building, crowdfunded the installation of solar panels on the roof. They raised 23'865 Swiss Francs, exceeding the goal.

Although crowdfunding always remains risky and time-consuming, it has benefits. Especially in more extensive operations like the projects of KiFF or Albani, the uncertain dependence on private landlords vanishes. But most importantly, successful crowdfunding campaigns further legitimise the existence of cultural spaces.